1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a dishwasher, and more particularly, to a sterilizing control method for a dishwasher for eradicating germs that breed inside the tub of a dishwasher after completion of a dishwashing course.
2. Description of the Related Art
Generally, a dishwasher is an apparatus that sprays washing water at high pressure within a tub to contact surfaces of dishes and wash away food residue and other impurities from the surfaces of the dishes.
Specifically, a dishwasher includes a tub forming a wash compartment, and a sump for storing washing water that is installed at the bottom of the tub. A wash pump installed in the sump prompts a flow of washing water to spray nozzles/arms, and the washing water that flows to the spray nozzles/arms is sprayed at high pressure through spray holes defined at the end portions of the spray nozzles/arms.
The washing water sprayed at high pressure collides against the surfaces of dishes, so that food residue and other impurities on the dishes fall to the floor of the tub.
A dishwasher according to the related art is capable of performing a pre-wash cycle, a main wash cycle, a rinse cycle, and a drying cycle (which are usually performed in said sequence). The main objective of such dishwashers is washing and drying dishes as thoroughly as possible.
However, there are often cases where condensed water collects within the tub after completion of the drying cycle, or moisture is not completely removed from the surfaces of dishes. In other words, the inside of the tub may not be dried completely, and thus retains a certain amount of moisture.
Dishwashers with built-in sterilizers, for preventing germ propagation within the tub, are now being launched in the consumer market.
In the case of such dishwashers according to the related art, however, the sterilizer performs only one sterilizing cycle of a predetermined duration after the drying cycle is completed. This sole sterilizing cycle is most often insufficient to eradicate germs.
Also, because germs that are not killed during the sterilizing cycle are able to proliferate at a higher rate, the sterilizing ability of the dishwasher is substantially compromised.
Furthermore, because the duration of a sterilizing cycle in a dishwasher according to the related art is too brief for completely eradicating germs, the sterilizing ability of the dishwasher is reduced.